Horror movies has been around for almost as long as movies have been made. Before looking at the horror movie it may be best to look into horror in literature. Knowing this can help our understanding of horror films and where they come from.
It is the horror stories in literature that gave this genre the push it needed to make films. If the legacy that the literary work had not been there horror movies would not be as we know them. In fact the term horror itself comes from the book The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole written in 1764 which was a book of the supernatural. Other great literary minds like Edgar Allan Poe propelled this genre with works like The Raven. These old horror stories are the bases of many different films including Dracula and Frankenstein which were written during the 1800's.
The supernatural were often the main theme of the early horror movie. At the beginning of movie making there were short silent films made including ones in the horror genre. Georges Melies, a French movie maker, is credited with the first horror film made in 1896 entitled Le Manior du diable. The Japanese also made some horror films at this time called Bake Jizo and Shinin no Sosei.
The full length horror film was first seen as a version of the hunchback of Notre-Dame. In the early 1900's the German expressionist film was at its peak meaning most of the first horror films were made by Germans. These German films have acted as influential works for many modern film makers like Tim Burton. The 1920's brought about the first Hollywood dabbling in the genre and the first American horror star in Lon Chaney Sr.
It was in the 1930's that the horror film was first popularized by Hollywood. Along with the classic Gothic films Frankenstein and Dracula there were also films made with a mix of Gothic horror and the supernatural. In 1941 The Wolf Man was an iconic werewolf movie created by Universal studios. This was not the first werewolf movie made but is known as the most influential. During this era other B pictures were created like the 1945 version of The Body Snatcher.
In the 1950's there had been many innovations in the technology used to make films. Additionally in this time the horror film was divided into two categories being Armageddon films and demonic films. During this time social ideas and fears were placed into movies but in such a way that it was not direct exploitation.
The 1960's were the time when many iconic movies came about. Hitchcock's movie The Birds was against a modern backdrop and was one of the first American Armageddon films. Perhaps one of the most influential films of this time was Night of the Living Dead. This movie brought zombies into the mainstream and it also moved these movies from the Gothic horror to what we know today.
Tracing the history of horror movies will take you back to the start of movie making. It is possible to see how movies changed from Gothic horror to what we see today. - 40729
It is the horror stories in literature that gave this genre the push it needed to make films. If the legacy that the literary work had not been there horror movies would not be as we know them. In fact the term horror itself comes from the book The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole written in 1764 which was a book of the supernatural. Other great literary minds like Edgar Allan Poe propelled this genre with works like The Raven. These old horror stories are the bases of many different films including Dracula and Frankenstein which were written during the 1800's.
The supernatural were often the main theme of the early horror movie. At the beginning of movie making there were short silent films made including ones in the horror genre. Georges Melies, a French movie maker, is credited with the first horror film made in 1896 entitled Le Manior du diable. The Japanese also made some horror films at this time called Bake Jizo and Shinin no Sosei.
The full length horror film was first seen as a version of the hunchback of Notre-Dame. In the early 1900's the German expressionist film was at its peak meaning most of the first horror films were made by Germans. These German films have acted as influential works for many modern film makers like Tim Burton. The 1920's brought about the first Hollywood dabbling in the genre and the first American horror star in Lon Chaney Sr.
It was in the 1930's that the horror film was first popularized by Hollywood. Along with the classic Gothic films Frankenstein and Dracula there were also films made with a mix of Gothic horror and the supernatural. In 1941 The Wolf Man was an iconic werewolf movie created by Universal studios. This was not the first werewolf movie made but is known as the most influential. During this era other B pictures were created like the 1945 version of The Body Snatcher.
In the 1950's there had been many innovations in the technology used to make films. Additionally in this time the horror film was divided into two categories being Armageddon films and demonic films. During this time social ideas and fears were placed into movies but in such a way that it was not direct exploitation.
The 1960's were the time when many iconic movies came about. Hitchcock's movie The Birds was against a modern backdrop and was one of the first American Armageddon films. Perhaps one of the most influential films of this time was Night of the Living Dead. This movie brought zombies into the mainstream and it also moved these movies from the Gothic horror to what we know today.
Tracing the history of horror movies will take you back to the start of movie making. It is possible to see how movies changed from Gothic horror to what we see today. - 40729
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